


Dreams of the Wolf

by BelleWrites (sunleyemrys)



Category: Dragon Age - All Media Types
Genre: Dreams, Prequel
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-30
Updated: 2018-03-30
Packaged: 2019-04-14 23:39:05
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,132
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14147139
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sunleyemrys/pseuds/BelleWrites
Summary: Yay writing prompt!





	Dreams of the Wolf

Ellana was not fan of the Frostback Mountains, it was chilly and there was ice everywhere. It was difficult to climb trees when your hands keep sticking to them. Even her lessons with Keeper couldn’t hold her attention for long. She wanted to explore, to see if there was anything other than snow and rocks, something.

“Da’len, it is not wise to wander far from camp. The shemlen here will try to put you in a Circle because of your gifts.” It was always the same warning, but Deshanna was right of course, though that didn’t stop Ellana from being curious. It was her curse, the desire to learn everything, to explore and find the hidden secrets.

If she wasn’t allowed to leave the camp without being accompanied, then she would explore the Fade. Fade-walking was new ground for her, but she was learning. A rare gift, she had been told, a throw back to the days of Arlathan when all Elvhan had the Gift. It was hers, and she would use it.

The Clan always had wards set, so it would be safe to Dream in the camp, and if her body was safe, she would be safe. Most spirits ignored her anyway, but Ellana knew to be quiet and unassuming while in the Fade.

The memories! The land was once a small stronghold of Elves, it was breathtaking. Spires of crystals and vines surrounded her, the remnants of the people walked around, bustling about. Ellana’s ears twitched, they were speaking Elven, but *real* Elven, not the smatterings of barely remembered words spoken in her time. So she listened, parsing out the words and committing it to memory.

“The Great Wolf has been lain in Uthenera. Now we wait for him to rise. The world is sundered, a fair judgement.” Not every word Ellana heard made sense, but it was history. The history of her People. So she wandered further, watching and listening, curious as to who this Great Wolf was. The only Wolf she knew about was Fen’Harel, the Dread Wolf, but they couldn’t be the same god. That made no sense to her.

Ellana found a small garden, filled with herbs, more utilitarian than beautiful, and that gave her a sense of peace. Whoever this Great Wolf was, he cared about ensuring the health and safety of his people. She sat on a bench and just observed things.

A rustle in the bushes behind her, drew Ellana’s attention away from the people. She followed the noise cautiously, aware that it could be a spirit that wanted to cross the Veil. All she saw was the briefest flash of a black tail before it disappeared.

She trailed behind, always a step or two behind catching up with the mysterious apparition. She knew was being lead somewhere, but common sense had taken a step back in her mind, in search of the new, of discovering something lost.

The Spirit showed her a waterfall and small body of water, it was gorgeous and wonderous. Ellana finally got to see her guide, a black wolf that was glowing slightly green. It was larger than any wolf she had ever seen. Its six red eyes blinking slowly as it watched her. The wolf sat upon a boulder, leaving enough space for her to sit, its tail thumping the stone.

“Well then, you are not scary at all.” Ellana approached the wolf carefully, holding out a hand, palm facing downward, her eyes fixed on its. Its cool nose touched her hand and briefly licked it and she giggled turning her hand over to stroke its face.

“Are you the Great Wolf the memories here are talking about?” The wolf’s head inclined downward in a nod. “All the stories I have heard don’t tell of a Great Wolf. We only know about the Dread Wolf, but I don’t think you are him, he was a monster that killed the Creators. You don’t seem like a monster to me.” If a Fade-Wolf could frown, this one certainly could, though sadness seemed to touch his eyes.

She sat next to the wolf, running her fingers through his fur. “I see that touched a nerve, and I am sorry. I know most of our history has been forgotten and misremembered. Maybe you could help with that, help me find the lost bits and restore them?” His tail wagged happily, and she smiled softly. “Do you have a body? I mean, not a Fade-form like you are currently, but one that can speak with me? Much fun as it is to chat with a wolf, this feels very one sided to me.”

_“I lay in dark and dreaming sleep Da’len. It would not be wise for me to wake yet.”_ She could feel more than hear his words, a soft lilting accent speaking the forgotten tongue of their people. _“To take my mortal form even in here, would take vast magics needed to restore.”_ The wolf pressed against her side. _“While your Clan is here I will teach you. Ancient magics, forgotten until now. But first, you must wake up.”_

*             *             *

Ellana jolted from her bedroll with a gasp. The Keeper needed to know there was a second Wolf, a good Wolf, not a monster! This was huge!

She dashed through the camp in her nightclothes, “Keeper! Keeper! DESHANNA!” The Keeper jumped from her sleep, magic glittering around her, ready for whatever danger was coming.

“What is it? Are we attacked? Da’len?” The magic faded as quickly as it appeared as the Keeper relaxed, yawning and sitting on her bed.

“There is more than one Creator Wolf! I met him, he was called the Great Wolf, and he is in Uthenera somewhere nearby. This place was near his stronghold. He wants to show me more of our history, to fill in the missing pieces.” Deshanna waved her hands dismissively, silencing Ellana.

“Da’len, da’len, stop. No, you had a dream, a very vivid dream. This place in steeped in the blood of our people. You probably encountered a demon. They can take many forms.” Deshanna sighed heavily, it was far too early in the day for Ellana. The girl was her First, but her quest to recover the lost things was dangerous.

Ellana clenched her hands, “Keeper no! No demon takes the shape of a black wolf. Not ever. It’s never been recorded. This was different. He spoke to me, in my mind. No demon, no Spirit does that. Don’t the stories tell of Mythal visited people in their dreams, offering them aid in times of need? Why couldn’t it still happen? Why not the other Creators?”

Deshanna rubbed her forehead. “Oh Mythal, when I promised your parents I would look after you. Ellana, do you have full control over your dreams?” The Keeper’s brows knit together, a sign that this was a very important question.

She toyed with her braid and studied the ground, mumbling out a yes. “Ellana, how long have you known you could do this?” The girl was fourteen seasons old, so very young. To have such a gift and not have her mind broken? All the Clans had heard of the elf-blooded boy near Kirkwall, the stories conflicted, but Dreamers could be dangerous.

“A few months? I’m not sure, it was a gradual thing, realizing I could change and reshape the Fade in my dreams. Its helped though! I’ve used it to help the Clan, like I am trying to do now.” Ellana felt almost like a petulant child, she wanted to stamp her foot, but knew that outbursts would not win this fight.

The Keeper grasped her shoulders, “Da’len. Listen to me very carefully, each Creator, each Forgotten One, embodied an animal, but there were never two of the same. You probably encountered an agent of the Dread Wolf. A trickster trying to lead you astray. Nothing more.” They needed to move camp, away from this place, she had to get Ellana away from the danger. To protect her at all costs.

Ellana’s eyes widened and filled with tears. “You’re afraid! Of what? That a spirit would actually want to help us? Or that I am growing past your ability to teach me?” She stumbled out of Deshanna’s grip. “Are you afraid of me?”

“Afraid *for* you. The Fade is not always want it seems.” The Keeper reached for Ellana but the smaller elf turned on her heel and ran away.

*             *             *

Tears burned her eyes as Ellana sprinted through the trees, heedless to the cold against her bare skin, uncaring at the branches that caught and tore at her hair. When exhaustion finally forced her to stop, gasping for breath against a rock, she surveyed her surroundings.

It was the waterfall from her Dream. No longer a waterfall, just a barren patch of land covered in ice and stone. She could feel out thin the Veil was, the barest press to slip through would be all she needed. Maybe the Great Wolf would be wanting for her.

She took her time setting the wards, it was usually a two-person job, so she went slowly, ensuring each ward was as strong as she could make it. There was nothing to create a fire with and the chill was starting to seep into her bones, but she refused to allow it to distract her.

Ellana laid back on the boulder, pillowing her head in her arms. She slowed her breathing and relaxed, letting her mind drift to press against the Veil. Inhale. Exhale. Inhale and exhale. It was like walking through a doorway, one second it was cold and desolate, the next, warm and filled with light.

The Wolf prowled, but noticed the moment she appeared, its entire body stiffened before easing. “ _Greetings Da’len. I did not expect you. Not so soon at least. You seem upset, why?”_ It turned to face her, red eyes blinking slowly.

“The Keeper says you are an agent of the Dread Wolf. A trickster come to lead me astray.” She could feel the tears trying to bubble to the surface again. “But its not true, right? You aren’t a demon? Tell me you aren’t a demon.”

The Wolf sat on its haunches. _“I am not a demon, I am a man.”_ She felt the pull of his magic, thready like he was disconnected from it mostly, but immense. The Wolf’s body shimmered in green light, changing shape.

Where once a Wolf sat, now stood a boy, roughly Ellana’s age. Taller and broader than most elven boys that age. He had auburn braids going down his back, and eyes that she could only describe as storm-grey. “I thought you said you couldn’t take your mortal form. That it was too much magic.”

He smirked at her, extending a hand. “It is, this form takes less magic to be.” His voice, now spoken sounded younger, less rough, the accent a bit thicker. She rested her hand in his. He felt real, and warm.

“You are not what I expected.” Ellana felt small next to him, somehow the Wolf was less intimidating than that of a teenage boy smiling down at her.

“I rarely am it seems.” He released her hand, clasping his together behind his back and rocking on his heels. “I am no one’s agent but my own. Though your Keeper is right. It is dangerous to have this kind of magic. And there are not many who can teach it safely.”

She touched his shoulder gently, “but you can. Cant you?”

He nodded, “I can, but not like this. I still do not have the strength to awaken. Nor do I have the power to teach you, here in this place.” He spread his hands. “So sadly, I must do something I will regret.” His hands touched her brow. “Ir abelas Da’len.” She felt a surge of his magic as he locked away her ability to be a Dreamer. “In time though, it will fade and you regain this gift. But for now, it is not safe.”

Tears stung her eyes, Ellana felt betrayed as he released her, leaning heavily on the stones behind him. “But why? Why take this away from me?”

His form was beginning to shift, unable to hold its shape. He had used more magic than intended. “Because I would not lose what you are to demons, or humans. You found me. No one else has found me in all the ages I’ve slept. But for now, you are too innocent, too young.”

She stepped closer, fingers brushing his cheeks. “You and everyone else tells me that. Its all anyone seems to care about, keeping me safe. No regard for my wishes.” Her hand snapped, slapping across his cheek. “No one gets to choose my destiny but me.”


End file.
